Paul surrenders to Alcaraz: "He's on another level"

Tommy Paul was a bit disappointing today, as more was expected from him against Carlos Alcaraz in the round of 16 at the US Open. After having beaten him twice and played great matches against the Murcian, seeing him at today's level leaves us with a bittersweet taste. It's true that Carlitos played an incredible match, but the American was never able to raise his level enough to consider turning the scoreboard around.

The American's press conference is absolutely wonderful. He praises Carlitos and perfectly describes what it means to face Alcaraz at this level, currently, while coming back from injury. Something difficult for him to believe.

His own feelings before facing Alcaraz

“I was playing very fast and hitting my forehand quite well. The feeling is that he simply overpowered me, that he was playing at a different level than mine. I think there were many things I could have done better, but I could have also done many things much better and still lost that match.”

Level of Carlos Alcaraz today

“I think he played quite well. He keeps hitting his forehand very hard and pushing you off the court with it. I have the feeling that maybe he is varying his returns a bit more. Before the match, I noticed that maybe the speed of his first serve had decreased a bit compared to before being out for so long, but I think he compensated very well with the first shot after the serve.

I felt that every time I managed to return... Although it’s also true that I don't think I returned his second serve as well as I did in other matches against him, but I think he did a great job with that first shot after the serve. He had me running immediately.”

Level of Carlos on the return today: won 44% of the points

“I think with my first serve he did a good job because practically every ball he managed to touch with his racket he returned inside the court and with depth. And with the second serves, as I mentioned before, he varied his position a bit. At the beginning of the match, he was closer to the baseline, trying to catch my second serve early. Then, towards the end of the first set, he stepped back, and during almost all of the second set, he was quite far back, returning all my second serves from a distance.

Then, basically, when he got the break in the third set, he moved forward again. I think he was trying to put even more pressure on me by getting closer. Yes, he clearly wanted the points to be quick and to make me play hurriedly.”

His own feelings

“Today, to compete and play well against Carlos, I needed to hit my crosscourt backhand much better than I did. He was finding the forehand practically after every crosscourt backhand I played, and I felt like he was going on the attack much faster.

I wasn't able to find a way to come to the net, and that’s something I need to do. I have to spend more time in a neutral situation and find more opportunities to come forward. Today, as I said, I couldn't do it because he was destroying me in the neutral exchanges. He goes from a neutral position to attacking at an incredible speed.”

Thinking about the level he should have played to beat Alcaraz

“It’s a bummer, you know? The feeling was that he was playing at a completely different level than mine. As I said at the beginning, I could have played much better and still lost that match.

I was talking with my team right after the match. It’s frustrating because you think, 'Damn, it’s really hard to win these kinds of matches against him.' But, at the same time, you learn a lot every time you play against him.

Every time I’ve faced him, we then go to the practice court with new ideas about the things he does well and what I can try to incorporate into my game.

Obviously, I haven’t been doing too well in our meetings lately, but at least I’ll go back to training with some ideas and certain things that I know I have to work on.”

How it feels to face Alcaraz's forehand

“There’s not much you can do to defend against it, you know? Especially when he manages to hit it the way he wants. But that’s exactly what I mean. I need to hit my backhand much better to prevent him from finding forehands from that backhand corner. That’s where his forehand is lethal.

Of course, he can also hit forehands from the other side of the court, but I don’t want to spend the whole match running behind the ball. If I have to do it a couple of times per game, that’s fine. But if he’s attacking the entire match and consistently hitting forehands leaning forward, I’m probably going to lose the match.”

Paul praises Alcaraz and how he has come back from injury.

🗣️ "I suppose Carlos is different. Every person is completely different. In my case, I need a couple of tournaments to return and really feel good again. It’s impressive to be out for so long,… https://t.co/0yQvGMQWWa pic.twitter.com/8DfZqesUYi

— José Morón (@jmgmoron) September 6, 2026

Seeing Carlitos at this level after an injury

“Well, I suppose Carlos is different. As you say, every person is completely different. In my case, I need a couple of tournaments to return and really feel good again, or at least play a couple of tight matches and from there maybe start to feel better. And I think he may have had something similar at the beginning of the tournament. But it’s impressive to be out for so long, come back, and play as well as he is. I couldn’t do it, for sure.”

Differences between Alcaraz in 2022 and now

“I suppose in the beginning, when he was still in the early stages of his career, you could play him a sliced crosscourt backhand and he would just respond with another backhand. Now, if you hit a sliced crosscourt, he moves and ends up hitting a forehand. In fact, one of the things we talked about before the match was trying not to use the slice too much because it practically becomes ineffective if you don’t manage to hit it very short and very crosscourt. 

If you don’t do it perfectly, he’s going to find a forehand and make you run. I think that’s one of the major differences. I also think his return and second serve have improved a lot in the last two years. He varies his second serve much more, making it much harder to attack him. Honestly, he has improved nearly every aspect of his game.”

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Paul se rinde ante Alcaraz: "Está a otro nivel"